Gaza War Horrors
The initial Hamas massacre of over 1,400 civilians is horrifying, but it becomes all the more so when considering the victims were Jews, a group that’s historically been targeted for constant massacres. Centuries of carnage culminated in millions killed in the Holocaust. The recent Hamas massacre is widely noted as the worst since then.
It’s intolerable.
So now we have hundreds of patients killed in the Al-Ahli Hospital blast. The Palestinians blame Israel, and the Israeli government says no, it was accidental from Islamic Jihad firing a missile.
Which is accurate isn’t really relevant, because once wars start, large numbers of civilians get murdered. The Palestinian Health Authority reported 2,778 killed before the hospital blast. Many more continue to be killed – or deprived of water, food, and shelter.
That’s the nature of war. Both military sides are to blame, and the civilians aren’t.
Webinars on Practicalities of Supporting Pregnant Women
The deVeber Institute has let us know it will be hosting a free online two-night lecture series from physicians on October 24 on supporting women and families through pregnancy and after, and November 7 on perinatal palliative care. Register and get more information here.
Dialogue and Deliberation
CLN board member Lisa Stiller went to the National Coalition for Dialogue and Deliberation to gain more skills in dialogue about the controversial issues we address at conferences. She reports:
Workshops included addressing polarities, finding common ground in dialogue, and facilitating group discussions around hot button issues.
One question discussed in a plenary session was "Why are we so afraid of conversation with people who are not ourselves?" According one of the speakers, we need to find our interconnectedness to build bridges.
Saturday night the documentary "The Abortion Talks" was shown and we were broken into small groups for discussion afterwards. People in my group were very accepting of all viewpoints, making it a comfortable place to talk about consistent life values.
Pictured is the Consistent Life Network exhibit where people shared what they thought were hot button issues today and engaged in conversations about the issues.
Our Latest Blog Post
There is now a major new online resource about Medical Dangers, Sex Abuse, Labor Problems, Racism: Documenting Planned Parenthood. Including court documents, mainstream media articles, and thousands of Google and Yelp reviews, the Problems at Planned Parenthood website offers factual information suitable for sharing with people who otherwise support Planned Parenthood.
Peace activists think in terms of noncooperation and of exposing solid information about violent institutions. This site is hoped to be persuasive to those who refer or donate to or use the services of Planned Parenthood, along with researchers of all kinds.
Quotation of the Week
Treneé McGee, Connecticut State Representative (D)
Published October 4, 2023
I remember walking to college . . . There were always young women on the streets with cards and clipboards from Planned Parenthood. And they would only stop the Black women. I will never forget, I was stopped one day, and I told the young woman I’m pro-life. And it was like . . . she shattered. She couldn’t believe it.
And I had gotten very involved in protesting Eric Garner‘s murder, because I was in college in New York. And I organized a protest . . . and we all marched out of our classes. My professor gave me an A for this. But I remember thinking: how could I protest this, and not challenge the fact that there were more Black babies in New York aborted than born?